WSET APP Policies

Académie du Vin is committed to providing a high standard of service to students enrolled in its WSET courses. This policy explains how students may raise a complaint relating to WSET courses and associated services, and how complaints and appeals will be handled.

1. Submitting a Complaint

Any student who is dissatisfied with a WSET course or associated services provided by Académie du Vin may submit a complaint in writing by email.

Complaints should be sent to: Mika Niiba (furikae@adv.gr.jp).

Complaints should be submitted as soon as possible and no later than three months after the event giving rise to the complaint.

The complaint should include:

• Student’s full name and contact details
• Description of the complaint
• Relevant dates and supporting information
• Details of any previous attempts to resolve the issue
• The outcome sought

2. Complaint Review

Académie du Vin will acknowledge receipt of the complaint within 5 working days.

The complaint will be reviewed and investigated as appropriate. Académie du Vin may request additional information from the student where necessary.

A written outcome will normally be provided within 30 working days of acknowledgement. If additional time is required, the student will be informed.

3. Appeals

If the student believes that the complaint has not been handled fairly or properly, they may submit an appeal in writing within 7 working days of receiving the complaint outcome.

The appeal should include:

• The reason for the appeal
• Any additional supporting information
• The outcome sought

Académie du Vin will acknowledge the appeal within 4 working days and will normally provide a written outcome within 30 working days.

4. Escalation to WSET

Complaints must first be addressed formally in writing to Académie du Vin.

Only after Académie du Vin’s complaints and appeals procedure has been completed and the complainant remains dissatisfied may the complaint be referred to WSET.

WSET Governance Team
Email: governance@wsetglobal.com

5. Records

Académie du Vin will maintain records of complaints and appeals and will handle personal information in accordance with its Privacy Policy.

As an Approved Programme Provider (APP) of WSET, Académie du Vin is required to identify to WSET and assist in the managing or monitoring of actual, potential, and perceived conflicts of interest (‘Conflicts of Interest’) involving both APP staff and students. This policy complements WSET’s conflicts of interest policy and works to safeguard the integrity of WSET qualifications and promote confidence in WSET and Académie du Vin processes and procedures.

This policy applies to all Académie du Vin staff and students and to any individual acting on behalf of Académie du Vin.

A Conflict of Interest exists where an individual has interests or loyalties that could adversely influence their judgement, objectivity, or loyalty to WSET or Académie du Vin when conducting activities associated with WSET qualifications.

Examples of Conflicts of Interest include:

• The assessment of candidates by an individual who has a personal interest in the result of the assessment for any or all individuals concerned.
• The moderation of assessment of candidates by an individual who has a personal interest in the result of the assessment for any or all individuals concerned.
• The undertaking of a WSET qualification by any individual employed by an APP.
• The invigilation of a WSET assessment by any individual involved in the delivery of training leading to the assessment.
• The coaching of candidates by any individual involved in the assessment of candidate scripts.
• The employment by an APP of individuals engaged in the delivery of taught programmes or in the role of Internal Assessor in another APP.
• The investigation of a non-compliance incident by someone who is unable to act impartially.

Some of these Conflicts of Interest are manageable and therefore acceptable. For example, if a family member of one of Académie du Vin’s educators or APP staff takes a qualification and exam through Académie du Vin, or when an employee of Académie du Vin, or of the WSET, takes a WSET qualification through Académie du Vin, Académie du Vin must notify WSET in advance and then work with WSET to put in place measures to maintain the integrity of the exam.

Some Conflicts of Interest are not manageable and are not acceptable. For example, no mitigation efforts can overcome the conflict created when a single individual serves as the educator and exam officer of an exam for a family member where an external invigilator is not available.

Any staff member or student of Académie du Vin who becomes aware of a Conflict of Interest must inform Mika Niiba (furikae@adv.gr.jp) as soon as possible. Mika Niiba will inform the WSET of the possible conflict of interest and will work with WSET to put any protective or mitigating measures in place to manage the conflict on a case-by-case basis. If WSET and Académie du Vin decide that the conflict is not manageable, Mika Niiba will inform any impacted APP staff or students.

Please note that the failure to declare a conflict of interest may have consequences for the student or Académie du Vin because it is required to report such conflicts to WSET.

Académie du Vin is committed to providing an inclusive and respectful learning environment for all students.

We do not discriminate in the provision of education, examinations, or services on the grounds of race, nationality, ethnic origin, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, pregnancy or any other protected characteristic.

We are committed to promoting equality by:

• Providing equal access to our courses and examinations
• Treating all students fairly and with respect
• Considering requests for reasonable adjustments in accordance with our Reasonable Adjustments Policy
• Reviewing our policies and practices as required to support an inclusive learning environment

This policy is implemented in accordance with applicable laws and regulations in Japan relating to equality, non-discrimination, and accessibility.

Questions, concerns, or complaints relating to diversity and equality should be directed to:
Académie du Vin (furikae@adv.gr.jp).

This policy applies to all students, educators, staff, and individuals acting on behalf of Académie du Vin.

Both WSET and Académie du Vin want to make WSET assessments accessible for all students, so none are at an advantage or disadvantage based on a disability or differing ability. This policy and the reasonable adjustment process allows Académie du Vin to work with each student before an assessment, gather the information needed to submit a request to WSET, and work with WSET to make arrangements that give students equitable access to WSET qualifications.

A reasonable adjustment is any accommodation or arrangement that helps to reduce the effect of a known disability or difficulty that substantially disadvantages a student’s assessment. The use of a reasonable adjustment does not impact WSET’s marking or the result of the candidate’s exam. The goal of reasonable adjustments is to equalise access for candidates – they must not give unfair advantage to candidates receiving the adjustment or affect the reliability and validity of the assessment outcomes as detailed in the applicable Specification. WSET cannot agree to reasonable adjustments where the candidate’s particular difficulty directly affects performance necessary to complete the assessment outcomes (e.g., if a student cannot taste for a Level 3 Exam where tasting is necessary).

Examples of reasonable adjustments include:

• Changing standard assessment arrangements, for example allowing candidates extra time to complete the assessment activity
• Adapting assessment materials, such as providing materials in large text format
• Providing access facilitators during assessment, such as a sign language interpreter or reader
• Reorganising the assessment room, such as removal of visual stimuli for an autistic candidate

Académie du Vin will gather the information needed from students to submit a Reasonable Adjustment Application form to WSET. WSET must approve and arrange reasonable adjustments before the assessment activity takes place. Before completing enrolment, Académie du Vin will give all students access to this policy and the chance to identify any special needs that could require a reasonable adjustment. If a student identifies a special need, Académie du Vin will give the student the Reasonable Adjustment Application form as soon as possible and work with the student to gather the necessary information.

For any student seeking a reasonable adjustment, please contact Mika Niiba (furikae@adv.gr.jp) with:

• Full name
• Contact information
• Description of the special need, disability, or differing ability that requires an adjustment
• Supporting documentation

Students must submit this information at least 30 working days before the exam date for Level 1-3 qualifications. The information students submit will be shared with WSET and will be handled under WSET’s Privacy and Data Protection Policy. Académie du Vin will keep records of all reasonable adjustment applications.

Special consideration is any adjustment given to a student who has temporarily experienced an illness or injury, or other event outside of their control at the time of the exam, that significantly affects their ability to take the exam or their ability to show their knowledge and understanding in the assessment. Special consideration is only for things that happen immediately before or during an exam that have a material impact on the student’s ability to take the exam or on their performance. To be eligible for special consideration, students must have completed the whole course and would have been fully prepared if not for temporary illness, injury, or another uncontrollable event. A special consideration may be for an individual (e.g. a student becomes ill on the day of the exam) or a group of students (e.g. an exam is interrupted by a natural disaster).

Students may be eligible for special consideration if:

• Their performance on the exam is adversely affected by an event outside of their control. This may include temporary illness, temporary injury, bereavement, or exam room conditions.
• Reasonable adjustments which were agreed to in advance of the exam proved to be inappropriate or inadequate.
• The application of special consideration would not make a passing result and certificate misleading about the student’s ability to satisfy the qualification’s assessment criteria.

Applying for special consideration

If a student has taken an exam, or their exam is quickly approaching, and they feel that they have a temporary injury or illness, or other uncontrollable event that has interfered with their ability to complete the exam, they should please contact Mika Niiba (furikae@adv.gr.jp) as soon as possible. Académie du Vin will provide them with a Special Consideration Application Form, which must be completed and returned with supporting documentation within 3 working days after the affected exam. The information a student submits will be shared with WSET and will be handled under WSET’s Privacy and Data Protection Policy.

If there has been a serious disruption during an exam affecting a group of students, Académie du Vin will submit a detailed report of the circumstances and candidates affected to WSET to request special consideration.

Académie du Vin will keep records of all applications for special consideration.

Both Académie du Vin and WSET have policies and procedures in place to protect WSET students and safeguard the integrity of WSET qualifications. Académie du Vin ensures compliance with Académie du Vin and WSET’s policies through this Malpractice and Maladministration Policy, which gives a framework for both Académie du Vin and students to identify, report, and manage potential malpractice or maladministration.

Non-compliance with Académie du Vin or WSET Policies and Procedures can fall into two distinct, but related, categories:

1. Maladministration, where the non-compliance is generally unintentional, or the result of mistakes, carelessness, inexperience, or poor processes.
2. Malpractice, where the non-compliance is intentional or the result of a negligent or reckless action without consideration of the consequences of the action.

Context is important, and the line between maladministration or malpractice is not always clear. For example, maladministration incidents may become malpractice (e.g. if a party fails to implement corrective measures, repeats the same or a similar incident, or attempts to misrepresent or hide information during an investigation), or there may be mitigating factors that turn potential malpractice into maladministration. Though malpractice and maladministration are distinct concepts, they can shade into one another. Malpractice and maladministration are always case, context, and fact specific. Both APPs and students can commit malpractice and maladministration.

There are many ways that malpractice or maladministration could occur, including new ways which WSET and Académie du Vin have not yet seen.

For APPs:

• Failure to adhere to WSET Policies and Procedures
• Failure to follow WSET requirements for course delivery or exam regulations
• Failure to follow WSET’s candidate registration and certification procedures
• Late student registrations
• Fraudulent claim for certificates/fraudulent use of certificates/reproduction or forgery of certificates
• Withholding critical information from WSET quality assurance
• Insecure storage of exam materials
• Revealing or sharing confidential exam materials with candidates ahead of an exam
• Intentional attempts to manipulate exam results so that they do not reflect the candidate’s actual exam performance
• Issue of incorrect exam results/failure to issue results to students promptly
• Failure to promptly respond to WSET
• Unauthorized reading/amendment/copying/distribution of exam papers
• Failure to report changes in APP ownership/personnel/location/facilities
• Denying WSET access to information, documentation, workforce, or facilities
• Failure to return exam papers within the specified time limit or to follow delivery and tracking regulations
• Infringements of WSET copyright, trademarks, intellectual property rights, and brand identity
• Use of unqualified and/or unregistered educators or internal assessors
• Breach of confidentiality
• Misleading advertising/publicity
• Any action likely to lead to an adverse effect
• Failure to disclose a Conflict of Interest

For students:

• Cheating, or facilitating cheating, including the use of unauthorised devices or materials
• Disruptive behaviour in an exam
• Plagiarism of any nature by students
• Impersonation, including forgery of signatures
• Unauthorised reading/amendment/copying/distribution of exam papers
• Any action likely to lead to an adverse effect
• Breach of confidentiality

In general, Académie du Vin also expects that both Académie du Vin staff and students will treat others and be treated professionally and respectfully at all times. Académie du Vin will treat inappropriate behaviour, including verbal or physical abuse, persistent or unrealistic demands, or threats that cause stress to staff, as misconduct and may report such student misconduct to WSET as necessary.